How to check the coolant, and what to do if it is low

Coolant is the term used to refer to the antifreeze/water mix that flows through your car's cooling system. On most cars, checking the coolant is simple. There will be a bottle under the hood, with a cap on it labeled 'ENGINE COOLANT ONLY'. Just look at the side of this and see if the coolant level is between MAX and MIN. If it's too low, add antifreeze, if it's too high, don't worry, this won't usually cause a problem.

Step two: Find the node that has been cooled. If you're looking for specific coolant, type his/her name in the textfield and set the option box in the left to "cooled by" mode.

Step three: Check the "Cooled by" field in listing.

What to do about it? Well, personally I'd think it doesn't really matter that much whether the coolant is low or high. But, true enough, typically a cool by high noder is better than cool by low noder. I wouldn't still take any action if the coolant happens to be low; it might be that high coolants just didn't reach your magnificent node before it got cooled.

Actually, to check your coolant, you need a coolanttester, which looks like a cross between an eyedropper and a turkey baster, with little plasticballs inside it. You draw some of the coolant into the tester by squeezing the bulb, then look at the little balls. They float at different specificgravities, and by comparing the balls to the tube markings, it will let you know if you need to add water or coolant to get the propermixture. You should replace your coolant every two years, and check your coolant every three months for the proper mixture, particularly in coldclimates.

You woke up that morning thinking about nothing but work. Your second day at a local service station awaited you, and you were excited as hell. You had always wanted a job working on cars, and after washing dishes this was a big step up.

In the middle of the day an out-of-service police car pulls up to island 3. You were pumping gas while the kid who was out there all morning ran across the street to the deli for some sandwiches. The cop behind the wheel mentioned coolant. That was good, a chance to show some prowess under the hood. You got it open and swiveled your head to look at the coolant bottle, which, it turned out, wa an empty RC Cola can. Empty. You looked at the radiator cap, emblazed with the words "DO NOT OPEN WHILE HOT". The cap wasn't that hot. You opened it and nothing happened-immediately. Something under the hood rumbled. The coolant in the radiator, released from its captive pressure of 12psi, came to a boil and rocketed, full-force, out of the radiator. A 250-fahrenheit-degree stew of toxic, sweet-stinking antifreeze shot into your face, your mouth, your nose, your eyes.

A week later, the sounds of a hospital still surrounded you. You couldn't see. The doctors told you that you might never again. The skin grafted onto your face was doing well, they said. You would survive, you knew you would- but you were through working on cars.